St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-10-30

locking the door and carrying the key
with him. At the expiration of the
time agreed upon to pay, and promptly
to the minute, the painter appeared
before his creditor holding in his hand
a small yalise.
81 have kept my word" said he, APP
preaching the landloard, ''and kept it
faithfully. You will find the money |
owe you, every jot and little of it, on
monsieur, my host. good day." and,
lifting his hand to his felt, the great
artist went out from house that had
proved so inhospitable, grand seig-
neur to the last.
Four steps at a time the innkeeper
leaped the staircase leading to the apart
ments that Rubens had left. The door
was partly open, and through the GREY
ice, even before he had reached the
! landing, he could see
THE SPARKLE OF THE GOLD
and silver pieces thrown pell.mell upon
| the table, quadruples, louis, double
t louis, ecus and demi-ecus, seem
lingly countless in number, and
certainly more than sufficient. The
eye of the good man twinkled, and,
smiling with delight, he fastened to en-
| ter, to gather up and store away the
money of which he had been so long de-
bprived. AS he laid his hand upon the
liable, however, he recoiled in fright
1.-The top was empty, and all those
heaps of gold and silver, so astoundingly
| deceptive, was the work of the brush of
the painter.
Transported witNanger, the innkeeper
! stood for moment motionless, then ran
to the bureau and the armoire; the
clothes of the artist, if he had not taken
them away with him, would aid. in part
at least, in acquitting the debt. The
| bureau was empty, but not so the
wardrobe, the row of clothes
pegs that filled the sides and
back being happily well garnished,
doubtless in velyets and satins of
all styles and cOlOrs; ruffS for the neck,
felts for the head, boots shoes, rapiers,
nothing, in short, positively nothing
missing requisite for the wardrobe of a
reached out his hand, attracted by the
beauty of doublet of corn-cOlored
satin, when he discovered some
thing that he had never for
an instant suspected, that all
this wardrobe full of gorgeous raiment,
so rich and elegant, like the table of
ecus, was simply painted, exquisitely,
delicately and
WITH EVERY FOLD AND FRILL
complete, nevertheless pain ted!
BOnte de ciel! the dauber, the rascal
had tricked him!
Yet all the same, whether the land
lord knew it or not, Rubens engaged
upon his word of honor to meet his en-
gagement, had done SO, and done it roy
ally.
| As told you, however, with con-
tempt for art and with the intolerance
| Of f,1f ro HQcpa1, for, uh f lint
payments in solid currency, the worthy
aubergiste was angrier than ever.
"I'll destroy them,'' he cried, cru
bens or no Rubens. and at once; not a
moment shall they tlaunt themselves
upon the furniture!"
Alas, when he came to examine them
he was helpless, for RubenS had separ-
ated the Stats at the back and painted
upon the walls themselves; the remedy
was worse than the evil, since to rio
himself of these mocking pictures he
would be forced to demolish the house
itself.
All at once as he stood in his despair
his eye fell upon the table again. Thai
he could remove at least, and lifting il
in his arms he bore it triumphantly tt
the loft above the granary. Whether
Rubens told the story of his debt or the
innkeeper himself, am unable to tel
you. but at all events the adventure was
( quickly noised about the city, and a
first the proprietor of his gorgeously
) adorned auberge was tOrmented half tt
|. death. All the same, in a little while
the ridicule died away, and the famou:
:. chamber acquired certain celebrity
: that brought In ecus by the score, trav
cling from far and wide stopping at The
modest hostelry simply for the honor O.
occupying apartments illustrated by
this wonderful pencil.
Unable to understand mania 81
Senseless, OF
THE PAYMENT OF DEBT
in so novel fashion, the good man O.